The Big Problem
by Golden Seeker 91
Summary: Didnt really know how to title this, basically joins Artemis and Percy in a big issue. would only let me put 4 characters but it contains all those usual Artemis characters and also ties in with the 7 half bloods of the next great prophecy .


Chapter 1 - The underworld

Percy couldn't see, he couldn't hear, he couldn't breathe. He plummeted down and down, his arms were forced out from beneath, stretched to breaking-point, still Percy couldn't feel the pain, the rushing rind was so cold he was completely numb. Something grabbed his fingers from above him. He couldn't move against the wind but he knew it was Annabeth. Somehow, using all his will he forced his hands shut and pulled Annabeth so she was facing him, their fingers locked together. Percy felt calm, seeing Annabeth made him feel grounded, safe. He focused on her grey eyes, eyes that 5 years ago he had found scary and intimidating. Now he couldn't go a day without looking at them.

"I love you." He said suddenly. But the words were not heard; the wind whisked them away before they reached Annabeths ears. She understood though, her eyes stayed locked to his and tears began to form at the corners of her eyes. She closed her eyes and Percy squeezed her hand. He knew she was praying to her mum for help. Percy decided he should do the same. He closed his eyes and prayed with all his will.

"Please Dad, if you can hear me, help us, or at least get Annabeth out safe, we can't win this war without her. Gia will crush you and then it will all be over. Just help, please."

When Percy opened his eyes again they were still falling and he could feel the air getting hotter. He looked to his left and saw a faint red glow turning the walls orange. He looked back at Annabeth and he knew she understood, it was the earth's core. They fell even further southwards and just as Percy had given up hope that they would get out of this he and Annabeth suddenly stopped falling. It was as though a cushion of air had just appeared under them, not unlike Jason's power over wind. Percy was able to look at Annabeth properly now instead of just seeing vague features stretched into speed lines.

"You ok?" Percy asked.

Annabeth nodded eyes wide and scared looking.

"What's going on?" she asked him in a voice slightly higher than usual. "Where are we?"

Percy just shrugged, suddenly the air pressure dissipated and the fell onto a hard, cold metal surface. It looked odd, like stuff did under the influence of the mist, but they could see it in a strange under waterish sort of way. They continued to travel downwards at a considerably slower pace, Percy could now see what was around him, and what he saw he did not understand. There were metal conveyor belts hanging out over the abyss, then he saw lights, like a runway, and huge magnets waiting, Percy assumed, for the craft they were sitting on to land. No doubt Annabeth would have understood the electronics involved. All Percy cared about though was where they were, and how they could get back to the others. Suddenly a voice spoke from around them.

"Stay where you are mud people, don't make me fry your brains."

The voice sounded metallic, as if it was spoken through a microphone with a small speaker. Annabeth and Percy looked at each other and Percy slipped his hand into Annabeths squeezing tightly. They sat on the cold metal and stayed silent. Suddenly a head appeared, a full faced helmet, small looking. The rest of the creature climbed onto the roof of the craft where they sat, very small body too, but muscular and fit. The creature drew a handgun from a holster on the green jumpsuit The creature had the same strange underwater look the crafts did. Blame his ADHD if you want, but Percy had to know. The creature was defiantly not entirely human, and when you had as much experience of monsters as Percy you always checked, even if they didn't appear hostile and this one had a gun pointed at them.

"What are you? Why do you look like your underwater?"

The creature froze and looked at Percy. He couldn't see the creature's eyes, but he could feel them watching him, trying to figure him out. The creature cocked its head to the side. After a few seconds it spoke, in the same metallic tone.

"You can see me?"

Percy scowled. Did this thing think she was invisible? Ok yeah so he had seen some weird stuff in his time, but never had he met something that thought it was invisible.

"Uhh yeah, and can you stop pointing that gun at us, I flip out if I feel trapped."

He was saying it from bravado, but it was true. Closed spaces made him go crazy, ever since he had spent time as a guinea pig in that cage on cercees island with Black beards crew. Every time he was trapped in a small space he wanted to curl up and hide in a corner. But he couldn't he had to be strong for Annabeth.

The creature clicked the safety catch on her weapon off, looked at them both and notest them holding hands and relented. Captain Holly Short may have been the first female in recons history to be put on the squad, she may have been in many ways more gun ho than most of the male recons, but still, at heart, the sight of two youths together such as this softened her heart.

"Sorry." She said, and she meant it.

She squeezed the trigger on the gun and fired a pulse of red light at the boys hand. The charge traveled between the two of them and both of them were unconscious in a second, they slumped together, hands still enclosed in each others grasp.


End file.
